Mean Fiddler (LA2) - London - UK
(29 November 2002)
I arrived with friends at the Mean Fiddler late. However, this materialised into a good thing, because all we had done was miss the queue. So, I fought our way into the hall of the LA2, and neared the front of the venue. I was extremely lucky with my timing, because not only had I missed the joys of queuing, but I had also bypassed a vast majority of people whilst they purchased their first drinks of the evening, so I was very close to the barrier distancing the audience from the stage and band. However, when the location began filling up after the support bands had played, I had to withdraw to the seats beside the walls, because of my size. (I wanted to actually get a view of the bands performing, not the back of someone in front, and also wanted to avoid risking being trampled on by those much bigger than me.) Nevertheless, I was still well positioned, I just had to go without seeing the Anathema drummer (those poor old drummers never get the spotlight) and bassist Jamie, who were hidden behind a wall of amps.
The first band, Thine, have been cited to share similarities to their headliners, Anathema, and fellow Peaceville signings Katatonia. I did not spot much influence from either band, and though Thine played reasonably, the songs were poor. So, we were treated to a pretty disappointing display from this band, but luckily, their set lasted only twenty minutes or so, and there was then a short break before Ship of Fools took the stage…
My knowledge of Ship of Fools is limited. I do know that they featured Anathema band members Danny and Les, and they actually split up several years ago. Tonight's performance would be a nice comeback display for fans of the band, and what a display it was. Lasting over thirty minutes, Ship of Fools lack a vocalist, which some may dislike, but it does not hinder their experimental brand of music too much. Their act this evening was very enjoyable to watch, and I felt slightly frustrated that I had missed such a band whilst they existed.
Ship of Fools finished to an impressive bout of applause, and a healthy twenty-five or so minutes of anticipation passed as we awaited Anathema. The venue was now full to the brim with people, so I was huddled atop my seat, preparing my camera for action. This position had another advantage - behind it was the exit from the backstage area, so I got to watch the band warm up and enter the stage, which added an extra touch of joy to the experience.
The band mounted the stage to much ovation, and despite the somewhat less than extreme nature of their more recent music, when they broke into 'Release' the front of the crowd began banging their heads and bounding about the floor excitedly. Anathema played for perhaps almost an hour and half this evening, and was forced out of an encore because they broke the ridiculous curfew the LA2 has at 10:30. That was disappointing, but we were still treated to sixteen fabulous songs, most of which were taken from the bands most recent two albums, 'A fine day to exit' and 'Judgement'. In fact, only three of the songs they performed weren't lifted from these two albums. Even 'A dying wish' wasn't performed this evening…the dazzling 'Angelica' was the earliest released material the band performed, proving that Anathema really do want to leave behind any evidence of them sharing any relation to doom.
As tragic as this was, Anathema's passionate act was nevertheless bewildering. At times I wanted to cry, with such emotion on display from hymns like 'One last goodbye'. Vincent's voice really has improved by great lengths since its early shakiness on 'A silent enigma' (I actually preferred ASE's moan-ridden singing, but that's just my own odd personal taste.) The crowd really appreciated Anathema's set tonight, and when Vince thanked the audience simply for turning up, it was difficult to quieten the audiences cheering again. Other than this display of gratitude, the between-song banter was kept to a minimum, just adding to the intensity of the performance and about half way into the show, the crowd was worked into such a frenzy that a mosh-pit broke out.
So, with this effective and emotive performance, Anathema have proved once again that they really are becoming a monumental rock act, and it wouldn't surprise me if they began to make big bucks with their next release. It's just a shame they no longer play doom…
- Stephen Burrell
(30 November 2002)
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